Black Ivory Biography

A stand-up soft soul trio from New York City, New York, USA, Black Ivory comprised lead singer Leroy Burgess III, Stuart Bascombe and Russell Patterson. The high tenor lead sound in stand-up vocal harmony groups was popular during the early 70s, and Black Ivory typified the sound with a selection of hits and two albums they recorded for the small Today label, starting in 1971 with Dont Turn Around (number 38 R&B) and ending in 1973 with Spinning Around (number 45 R&B). The group followed with two more chart hits on the Kwanza and Buddah Records labels, and recorded three albums for the latter before disbanding. In 1980 Burgess joined twin brothers Taharqa and Tunde-Ra Aleem to form a new trio called Aleem. The group put four records on the charts from 1984-87, the most successful of which was Loves On Fire (number 23 R&B) in 1986. Burgess has remained in demand as a writer and producer well into the new millennium.

Source: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music by Colin Larkin. Licensed from Muze.